Sick Day
by TheCatholicFanGirl
Summary: Audrey catches the flu! Nathan and Duke are left to take care of each other for the whole day. What happens next? Implied D/A/N don't like don't read. Second fic guys go easy please!


Audrey coughed twice and moaned. Nathan checked her temperature while Duke held a glass of orange juice at the ready. "One-hundred-one point one" Nathan winced. "You have the flu." He sighed, and set the thermometer down. "Didn't you get your flu shot?" he asked.

"No," Duke said "That was actually the two of us who got the flu shot; Audrey said that she never got sick."

Audrey shot him a look and took the orange juice and sipped it slowly. "I don't." she croaked out, with a raspy voice.

The boys winced. "Yeah, sore throat, runny nose, cough, sweatiness, fever; I say you have the flu babe." Duke sighed and sat on the bed.

She sighed and attempted to sit up. "I got to work…" she moaned in the same painful voice.

"No," Nathan sighed and pushed her back down. "No you don't need to save the Troubles in the condition you're in." he brushed away some sweaty strands of hair. "We can stand one day without you." He smiled at her kindly.

She sniffled. "What…"

"Please stop talking, you know I love to hear your voice, but that sounds painful." Duke sighed.

She motioned for pen and paper.

Nathan grabbed a legal pad and pen and handed it to her. She scribbled down a sentence and handed it to Nathan. "What about you guys?" he read aloud.

She nodded and looked at the two of them.

"Audrey we can stand one day without you." Duke promised her. "We can take care of each other."

Nathan nodded. "Sounds like it might be a bad idea, but if it helps you get some rest…"

She reached for the pen and paper and then tore off a sheet and wrote down a list of things. She tore it off folded it in half and handed it to Duke then did the same for Nathan. She then scribbled down a sentence and handed it over to Duke. "That's what you guys need to do for today." He read aloud.

"Make sure Duke eats by twelve thirty, or else he gets sobby?" Nathan asked reading aloud.

She sighed took the paper back and wrote a more defined C and A. "Crabby," Nathan nodded. "Makes since." He nodded.

Duke read through his list of things silently. "What does check for injuries on Nathan mean?" he asked.

She sighed and attempted to sit up but Nathan pushed her back down. "I'll tell him when we get there." He said. "Right now, let's move you to the couch, and work on getting you better." Nathan said and she reached out for him.

He cradled her in his arms and walked towards the couch and sat her down. Duke fluffed her pillows and gave her the remote and her cell phone. "Anything happens I'm just downstairs, or in my boat okay?" he smiled. "Text me, don't call understand?"

"And me too." Nathan said and kissed her cheek. "Alright, let's leave her to getting better, Duke." Nathan said and patted him on the shoulder.

"I just brewed a fresh pot of coffee downstairs." Duke said and gave Audrey's hand one last squeeze.

,',',',',',',',','

As the boys thudded downstairs Duke read the first instruction aloud. "Sip test Nathan's coffee?" He scoffed as he read aloud. "I thought you could taste how hot something was."

"Nope," Nathan sighed.

"Why do I need to sip test though?" Duke asked. "Coffee's not that hot."

Nathan shrugged. "Audrey normally does sip test my coffee, I thought she did that to be cute." He said and they walked into the bar as Duke got Nathan's normal coffee cup. "You don't have to…" he said holding his travel cup close to him.

Duke held up his hands "Fine by me, as long as you don't tell our girlfriend we ignored her little list thing." He said holding up the sheet of paper.

"What does yours say next to do?" Nathan asked.

Duke sighed and read aloud. "Put backup set of keys in Nathan's jacket pocket." He raised an eyebrow. "Do you lock your keys often in your car?" he asked.

Nathan shook his head. "Nope, where are my backup keys anyways?"

"Check your pockets?" Duke asked.

Nathan sifted through his normal jacket pockets. "Here," he said and shoved the keys in his pocket. "You can cross one off." He smiled and sipped his coffee.

Nathan's phone buzzed. He answered it "Wuornos."

He sighed and rolled his eyes. "Thanks, I'll be there in ten." He said and then sipped from his coffee again, he read his list. "What does she mean by 'take the backup set for Duke's car'?" Nathan asked.

Duke shrugged.

"I'll leave the keys here then, you don't lock them in your car often do you?" Nathan asked.

Duke shook his head. "Nope."

{}{}{}{}{}{}

Nathan realized he was talking funny when he got into the station. "Good morning Shtan." He lisped, and frowned.

"Good Morning Nathan," Stan said and handed him a file. "Route 24, couple of drunk teenagers, crash… you know." He shrugged.

Nathan raised his eyebrows. "Any word on a trouble?" he muttered.

Stan looked around then gave a small nod.

O O O O O O O O O

Duke sighed and after spending a good day cleaning his ship walked into the Grey Gull to open the doors and get ready for the lunch crowd. Half past one people started to show up, he felt his stomach growl, but then ignored it when his Host Mike rolled by. "Hey Mr. Crocker," he grinned. "We just got a call to cater the Smith's wedding, and we also have been asked to host the annual bird watching luncheon, Chef Kat and Karl want to have a word with you about that." He said and handed him a couple slips of paper.

"Thanks Mikey," he said and then walked into the kitchen to see Kat and Karl getting ready for tonight. The two of them were married, but at work Duke would've never guessed. With Kat being so strict and Karl being loose he would've never pegged the two of them as a couple. But then with Audrey so tight and Duke so… Duke and Nathan so stoic… "What do you got for me?" Duke asked and immersed himself into his work.

Nathan walked into the Grey Gull to be greeted heartily by Mikey, "How's it going Nathan?" he asked.

"Fine Mike, thankshh" He said and then frowned again and almost reached a hand up to his mouth to find out why he was lisping, but then realized he wouldn't be able to feel anything. "I'm looking for Duke?"

"He got a headache, and is out on the dock, trying to let it pass, it seems like a doozy but you know him." Mike winked.

Nathan nodded. Duke would rather attempt to sew on his own arm before going to the hospital or asking for help. Slowly he walked out to the dock to see Duke slumped over legs dangling off the dock. "You okay?"

Duke raised his head just an inch, winced and nodded. "Yeah, headache, it's like a hangover in the middle of the day." He said and sighed.

"Listen have you hired someone named Jessica?" Nathan asked. "I hate to ask, but she's involved with an accident and well, I wanted to know if she had any troubles."

Duke sighed. "That's all you want?" he demanded. "All you ever want." He scoffed. "Should've guessed"

"Have you?"

Duke sighed and rubbed his forehead. "Yeah, and no, she doesn't have any troubles lucky girl." He shook his head.

"Are you okay?" Nathan asked.

"Now you ask how my wellbeing is." He scoffed. "Yeah fine Nathan."

Nathan sighed and squatted down to look into Duke's eyes. They were bloodshot. "What happened to your eyes?"

"Headache happens sometimes." Duke said and rubbed his eyes. He glanced at Nathan. "What happened to your mouth?"

Nathan frowned. "I don't know?"

"It's all red," Duke frowned. "Forget it, I think there's some painkillers upstairs." He said and hoisted himself up.

They walked in to the apartment and Audrey's head popped up. Some of her color had returned, but she still had bags under her eyes. She waved at them.

"Don't mind ushs." Nathan lisped. "We are getting painkillers for princess over here."

"Shut it Tin Man." Duke scoffed.

Audrey frowned then motioned Nathan over. She scribbled something on her pad and handed it to Nathan. "Did Duke eat today?" he read aloud. He shrugged. "I don't know," he said. "Why?"

She sighed and yanked the pad and scratched a note and handed it back to Nathan. "Because you were supposed to feed him remember?" he read. She squinted and then pulled the legal pad and after finishing her note he read aloud. "What happened to your mouth?" he asked. He shrugged.

Audrey tapped her mouth and opened it and pointed to him.

Nathan complied and Audrey gasped softly and then got up and ran to the bathroom and dragged Duke to Nathan. She pointed to his mouth which was still open. "What?" he asked and then looked into Nathan's mouth. "Whoa!" he yelped.

Audrey grabbed her pad and wrote a note to Duke, who after a beat read it aloud. "Did you check the temperature on his coffee before he drank it?" he sighed.

"Busted." Nathan sighed.

Audrey walked off.

"Where are you going?" Duke asked her and watched her walk to the bathroom. "You should be back in bed missy."

She threw him a look, and came back with a bottle of Orajel. After sanitizing her hands and drying them she dabbed some medicine on her finger and motioned for Nathan to open his mouth. He did so and she smeared some on his tongue and lips. She wiped the rest on her pajama bottoms and then handed Duke another note. "He's not going to be able to talk for a while, let's get you a sandwich princess. Nathan, sit down." Duke read.

They shrugged at each other and Nathan sat down. Audrey opened the fridge and handed Duke Bread, deli meat, and mayo. He quickly made a sandwich and followed Audrey to the living room.

After some time with Audrey, even though she kept silent, the boys felt refreshed. Audrey waved them goodbye as they headed back to the outside world.

[][][]

"What does your list say to do next?" Duke asked Nathan once the bar had quieted down a little.

"To pick up milk and eggs at the end of my shift," Nathan sighed. "Is there anything else I need to pick up?"

"Cough syrup for Audrey, she needs rest, I saw there wasn't any in the bathroom." Duke sighed and scrubbed his eyes. "We are well taken care of by Audrey." He sighed. "We can't even take care of each other, she does so much, man I feel sucky."

"Hey, it's new to us, and we didn't think Audrey was serious." Nathan sighed. "It's not too bad." He said and nodded to him. "What does it say to do on your list?"

"It says just to after your shift to check you for injuries." He said. "Which you still haven't told me about,"

"Every night while you're closing the bar, Audrey checks me for injuries." He said and got a little red in the face. "I can't feel it when I get hurt so…"

Duke nodded. "Gotcha,"

"It's normally the best part of my day Duke, don't mess it up for me tonight." Nathan begged. "I'll be fine, I don't need to be checked for injuries, I haven't been shot at, or thrown around. I haven't even fallen today." Nathan said.

Duke nodded. "Gotcha," he said again. "I'll make some chicken soup and check up on our girl while you're out."

"Thanks," Nathan said and stood for a moment as if trying to figure out a way to say goodbye. He settled for an awkward pat on the hand, and left.

:.:.:.:.

Nathan got home and saw Audrey whispering and Duke smiling at her as she retold about her boring day on the couch. "Hey," he said and kissed her cheek. "You sound better."

"She is," Duke said and stood helping Nathan put away the groceries. "She took a two hour nap, and then had three bowls of my chicken soup and then took another two hour nap. I washed the sheets and put them back on, so the two of us are clear to sleep on them. Audrey has decided to take the couch for the night."

"Wow, Duke, didn't know you made such a nice housewife." Nathan smirked.

"Wise words coming from the mouth of a burn victim," Audrey pointed out in a voice just above a whisper; she grinned and opened her mouth so she could look at Nathan's burn. "It's healing." She said and then Duke handed her a small cup filled with dark liquid. "Cough syrup?" she raised an eyebrow.

"Yup, you still have a fever, and that cough, you're lucky the two of us got our flu shot." Duke smirked "Bottoms up."

She sighed and threw back the cough syrup as if it were a shot, as soon as it passed her tongue she made a face, and Duke handed her some tap water. "Make sure you check Nathan," she whispered.

"We will." Duke promised. "I'm going to run downstairs clean up and close the bar." He kissed Audrey's forehead. "Goodnight Audrey." He whispered to her and gazed into her eyes.

She held a finger up to her eye, then made a heart with her hands and pointed to him.

"I love you too," he said and stood letting Nathan say goodnight to her.

Nathan pushed back some of her hair and smiled at her, she smiled back and twined her fingers with his long ones. They smiled and then he let go as Audrey started to drift off.

Nathan followed Duke.

They didn't talk much, but Duke wiped down the bar a smile creeping on his lips before he wrestled it down. Nathan scratched his chin absently a rare grin pressed on his lips. "Amazing isn't it?" Nathan said softly.

Duke nodded. "Something so simple makes our day better." He sighed and grinned. "I love how she doesn't even realize that she does that."

"I love how she does this little snore when she sleeps." Nathan smiled.

"Or when she has a nightmare she grips onto us." Duke sighed. "Dude, we're whipped." He laughed.

Nathan joined in. "Wouldn't have it any other way."

Duke nodded. "I'll drink to that." he bent down and fished out the glasses.

"I'm going to head to bed." Nathan said and stretched his back. "I've been tired this whole day."

"Make sure you put on that mouth thing." Duke said and put the glasses back down. "I apologize for that problem."

Nathan heaved a yawn and shook his head "Don't worry about it." He stood and then fell over.

Duke frowned and then walked over to Nathan who was on the floor. "You okay?" Duke asked.

Nathan didn't respond.

Duke patted his face. "Nathan?" he asked. Nathan didn't stir. Duke stood grabbed a wad of tissues, squirted some hand sanitizer on the wad and held it under Nathan's nose.

Nathan moaned and grabbed Duke's wrist. "Call ambulance." He said and then he passed out again.

\/\/\/\/\/

The ambulance loaded Nathan in the back of the truck. "I'll be right behind you," Duke said. "Let me just wake our roommate." He said and then ran upstairs.

Audrey was still asleep, Duke shook her awake. "Sweetheart." He whispered.

She stirred and smiled. "Good morning sleepy head." She said.

"Audrey we got to go," Duke said.

She woke up. "What's going on?" she knew by his voice something was up.

"Nathan he-he-he passed out and I called the ambulance and…" Duke said.

Audrey stood a little sway on her feet but she changed her shirt and pants quickly and pulled on some shoes. "I'll drive."

"You had cough syrup an hour ago, that's like twice as strong as alcohol, so I'm driving." Duke said and then began looking for his keys, patting his pockets.

"Grab the backup pair." Audrey said.

"Right… where are they?" Duke asked pointing to her as she started to grab her wallet, badge, and gun.

"In the Gull, next to the blender on the hook." She said and began searching for Nathan's things.

They jumped in Duke's car when Duke felt something hard as he sat down. Frowning he reached under himself in the dark and pulled out his keys. He blinked at her.

She sighed and ran her fingers through her hair. "Normally after you get the shrimp or the fish of the day, you set your keys down on the seat and lock the doors, I convince Nathan to stop by at lunch, and I unlock your car." She said.

"And Nathan's backup set?" Duke asked turning on the car.

"When things get racy, he sometimes locks the doors and runs, forgetting his keys." She said and shrugged.

"I want to kiss you, like make-a-baby kiss you right now, but you're sick, and now is not the time." Duke said and made way for the hospital.

Duke and Audrey ran into the emergency room. "Hey, we're with Nathan?" Duke said. "He came in, fainting victim…"

Marge the Nurse behind the counter nodded while on the phone and opened the door. "Room three." She called.

Room three had the lights on, and Nathan awake. Audrey hugged him, and Duke squeezed his hand. "It's nothing." He promised.

"What happened?" Audrey demanded.

"Concussion," Nathan admitted, "I told the paramedics I felt fine, and… I just fell and I hit my head."

"Did you not check him?" Audrey asked Duke.

Duke swallowed. "He told me not to."

Nathan nodded.

She sighed and grasped Nathan's hand. "I guess I'm never going to take another sick day again." Audrey said.

"No, we just suck at taking care of each other." Duke promised.

"We've been so used to you taking care of us; I guess we got a little spoiled." Nathan shrugged. "Not that we don't mind it."

"Actually we prefer it." Duke pointed out.

Audrey laughed. "You two take care of me pretty well too." She pointed out.

"How so?" Nathan asked.

"Well, the cupcake you always get me Nathan at the end of a long case." Audrey pointed out. "Or how you tuck me into bed Duke, or how you pour my coffee every morning."

"Two creams, three sugars." Duke recited. "But Audrey that's nothing compared to what you do. You make sure we don't lose our heads, and look like the village idiots."

"And you keep us out of the hospital." Nathan noted.

"And you don't complain." Duke pointed out.

She smiled. "I don't care, because I can't live without either of you guys, you guys do plenty of things for me. Nathan you vacuum, Duke you cook, Nathan you keep things organized, Duke you make sure the two of us are relaxing when we need to…"

"Okay, we do things for each other because…" Nathan started then looked at Duke. The relationship was still so new to the two boys, and they hadn't really had time to sort out their feelings.

Duke shrugged. "We love each other." He nodded at Nathan.

"Because we love each other," Nathan nodded.

Audrey smiled. "My boys." She cooed and reached over to Duke's hand and squeezed it.


End file.
